Saving Hermione
by worldcomesdown
Summary: Harry Potter's death signified the end of the resistance. Hermione Granger has gone into hiding, leaving her magic and past behind. With Harry's last words to him in mind, Draco Malfoy is determined to find and protect her at all costs.


Prologue

The boy's grey eyes surveyed the damage. The castle that had once stood strong was in ruins. The floor that had once gleamed with wax now gleamed with scarlet blood. The statues that had stood as silent sentinels for the school were now broken and desecrated on the floor. It was quiet now, but just an hour before screams and cries had punctured the night.

There was an odd ringing in Draco Malfoy's ears. Everything seemed wrong. Over the past year he had imagined this battle a thousand times. He had never imagined it to be like this.

The sound of footsteps cut through the silence. Sighing, Draco quickly turned down an abandoned corridor. After everything he had seen, after everything he had been through, he had no more energy to face an unknown foe. Death eater, Order of the Phoenix member, Hogwarts student, everyone was against him. He sighed as he remembered the old Draco Malfoy. The Draco Malfoy from the beginning of sixth year: Pompous, arrogant, and confident. If the last year had taught Draco anything, it was that he no longer retained any of the Malfoy swagger. Gone were the days when he thought of himself as the "Harry Potter" for The Dark Lord. The mark burned into his skin only remained to remind him that he was a failure in every instance.

Malfoy's eyes jerked forwards as he slammed into something solid. No one was visible in the darkness but his eyes were fooling him. For one, he was still touching the very solid, very real matter. For two, a distinctive "dammit" and "ouch!" spoke into the darkness.

Malfoy glared down the empty hall. "Potter?" he hissed.

There was a shuffling noise for a moment before Harry Potter materialized in the darkness. For a moment Draco just looked at Harry. Harry's normally bright green eyes were crinkled and red. There were cuts lining his face and he was covered in blood. Draco had not been near a mirror recently, but he knew he must look the same.

Draco glanced at the invisibility cloak in Harry's arms. "Why were you under the cloak?" Draco couldn't help but feeling a little put out. Here he was, feeling sorry for himself because he was useless to these people, and their fearless leader was _hiding_?

Harry's eyes narrowed. "Never mind, okay? You didn't see me." Harry started to pull the cloak back up to his body but was stopped as Draco yanked it from his arm.

"What do you think you're doing?" Draco hissed.

Harry glanced at Draco. There was sadness in his eyes Draco had never seen before. "I have to go, okay? And no one can know." His voice sounded broken, hopeless.

"You're leaving?" Draco snapped. He felt disgust. No matter what his previous opinions of Potter, he hadn't expected something like this. "I never would have believed this. The Chosen One abandoning everyone he cares about to save his own skin. What, Weasley dies so you give up?" The memory of Ron's broken body in the great hall came to the front of Draco's mind but he quickly pushed it away.

Harry's eyes flashed. "I'm not abandoning anyone and I'm not giving up. I can't explain it, but I have to go. They'll understand." He paused and looked at the ground. "At least I hope they will."

"Where are you going?"

Harry glanced up. He didn't seem angry anymore, just sad and confused.

Draco sighed. "Look, who am I gonna tell? I'm not on your side, I'm not on their side, no one trusts me…" His voice trailed off.

Harry seemed to be searching for words. Finally, he said, barely above a whisper, "I have to go to him."

"You can't!" Draco's voice echoed through the corridor. He glanced around but no one heard, or cared. He lowered his voice. "He'll kill you."

Harry met Draco's eyes once more. The sadness remained in the emerald depths, but there seemed to be determination too. "I have to do this, Draco. Sometimes you gotta realize you're not the chosen one after all." Draco blinked at the use of his surname.

The determination in Harry's eyes seemed to be building. Harry walked past Draco and slowly began to pull the cloak out once more, ready to sink once more into invisibility.

"What can I do?" Draco's words echoed through the corridor as he almost longed to drag them back.

Harry turned around, meeting Draco's eyes one last time. Harry's expression was unreadable. Finally Harry spoke. "Protect Hermione." He yanked the cloak over his head and disappeared from Draco's vision.


End file.
